UncommonPromise

Ohio, mid-July. After lunch my brother played baseball with his friends, leaving me to guard the freshly dug hideout we’d worked on all morning. Here in this hole, no one would bother me for hours. I looked down at my lavender plaid blouse, dirty from the day’s work, and pressed my back into the corner of the red earth fortress. I dropped my head back to watch the clouds drift past without hurry or destination. I was alone in the world, I thought. I heard the sound of my heartbeat echo in my ears. I watched thoughts pass uninterrupted through my mind. Picturing myself older and wiser, I imagined possibilities. I wondered if one of our dogs would find me here, down in the ground. The more alone I felt, the more my thoughts expanded to fill this small cave. I glanced again toward the clouds.



Footsteps ran toward me, my brother returning from the side-lot game. As he approached the hole, loose dirt tumbled onto my head. I dusted my part and pushed strands of hair behind my ear. “Let’s build a tent over the clothesline!” my brother said. “Maybe tomorrow,” I answered. Today, I’m the keeper of the cave!”

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Uncommon Promise Video Channel

Under the Tuscan Thumb Blog

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